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Audio Video NewsNew Products
1More Takes on Apple with New Head-Tracking Wireless Earbuds
Bob Ankosko  |  Oct 31, 2022
China-based headphone specialist 1More is taking on Apple’s AirPods Pro with its new Aero wireless earbuds, which offer active noise cancellation (ANC), up to 5 hours of playback from a single charge with ANC turned on, and dynamic head-tracking for an improved “spatial audio” experience — all for $110, less than half of what the new AirPods Pro sell for ($249).
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Ask S&V
How Can I Get Sonos to Randomize My 700-CD Collection?
John Sciacca  |  Oct 31, 2022
Got a tech question for Sound & Vision? Email us at AskSandV@gmail.com

Q I have a Sonos system for playing music throughout the house. I've recorded my 700-CD collection and like to listen to the songs randomly but Sonos does not access the whole collection — only about 4,000 of the 6,000 available songs. Can you recommend a solution, or do you know of an app that can safely randomize files? —Clive Fox, Richmond, VA

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Spatial Audio FileThe S&V Interview
Here, There and Spatially Everywhere
Mike Mettler  |  Oct 28, 2022

The Beatles’ Revolver further solidified the creative validity of the rock album format when it was released in August 1966. Seeing how Revolver’s Super Deluxe Edition multidisc LP/CD box set incarnations have been officially released via Apple/UMG today, October 28—not to mention the inherently excellent Revolver Atmos mix by producer Giles Martin concurrently being made available digitally—I had to find out why I needed to get that Atmos mix into my listening life. Therefore, Martin and I got on Zoom together recently to discuss exactly that. He also shared with me what his late father, original Beatles producer George Martin, thought of his multichannel mixing skills. These are all perfect topics for this month’s Spatial Audio File (he said he said), so read on, read on. . .

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Music and Soundtrack FeaturesAudio Video News
Recording and Remixing Revolver
Matt Hurwitz  |  Oct 28, 2022
All photos courtesy of Apple Corps Ltd. unless otherwise noted.

For many Beatles fans, Revolver is their favorite album. A balance of great songwriting and first dips into experimentation and change even place the 1966 LP above Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band and Abbey Road for some. The album was a clear step forward into new kinds of music, fresh sounds, and pioneering recording techniques. Following in line with Special Edition packages of Sgt. Pepper, Abbey Road , The Beatles (a.k.a. The White Album), and Let It Be, Apple Corps, Ltd/Capitol Records/UMe today released a series of new special editions of Revolver featuring the original mono mix and a new stereo remix by Giles Martin (son of original producer Sir George Martin) and engineer Sam Okell plus a Dolby Atmos mix of the album, now available via download. Matt Hurwitz explores the creation and lasting legacy of the work that marked a turning point in the evolution of the world’s greatest band.

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Blu-ray Movie ReviewsUltra HD Blu-ray Movie Reviews
Child's Play
Chris Chiarella  |  Oct 28, 2022
Picture
Sound
Extras
Chucky, the possessed plaything who would go on to become one of the premier icons of late 20th-Century horror, got his start right here in this 1988 outing. When a dying serial killer with a fondness for the occult transfers his soul into the only vessel available—the hot new talking doll on display at a toy store—little Chuck winds up going home with a single mom and is soon in the hands of a cherubic six-year-old boy.
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Subwoofer Reviews
Sonos Sub Mini Powered Subwoofer Review
Leslie Shapiro  |  Oct 26, 2022

Performance
Features
Build Quality
Value
PRICE $429

AT A GLANCE
Plus
Most affordable Sonos subwoofer
Compact, attractive
Controlled, restrained bass response
Minus
No Trueplay for Android
Fixed crossover
Only useable in the Sonos ecosystem

THE VERDICT
The Sonos Sub Mini is a great way (albeit, one of only two ways) to add deep bass to a Sonos soundbar or speaker in a small listening room. Considering that Sonos is a closed system, the Sub Mini only works with Sonos products, and Sonos products will only work with Sonos subwoofers. While not exactly a budget item, it's the most affordable subwoofer in the Sonos ecosystem.

What is the number one complaint about almost every soundbar? Let’s say it together: lack of deep bass. Even soundbars as sonically competent as the Sonos Beam and Ray could benefit from more. So here comes the Sonos Sub Mini (MSRP $429), a compact subwoofer that perfectly bonds with all of the non-portable, amplified Sonos products. It should be noted that while the Sub Mini will work with the larger Arc soundbar, Sonos recommends using that configuration only in a smaller room and at low-to-moderate listening levels. Fair enough.

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Director's Intent: Kaleidescape 4K
Top Gun: Maverick
David Vaughn  |  Oct 25, 2022
A couple weeks ago I explored a different way of experiencing movies at home — one that doesn’t involve spinning 4K Blu-ray discs or streaming movies from Netflix and other services. I’m talking about the server-based movie system Kaleidescape introduced way back in 2001. The system, which is available only through custom integrators, has evolved over the years yet I never had the opportunity to experience it firsthand until recently when Kaleidescape offered to loan me the company’s Strato C Movie Player with a companion server, the 48-terabyte Terra. (You can read my impressions of the system in A Marriage Made in Movie Heaven.) To further explore the Kaleidescape ecosystem, Sound & Vision agreed to run bi-monthly blog where I review titles available from the Kaleidescape store. Here is the first installment.
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Audio Video NewsNew Products
Pro-Ject Demos ‘True Balanced Connection’ Turntables
Howard Kneller  |  Oct 25, 2022
Nobody ever went broke betting that the latest turntables and phono stages from the Austria’s Pro-Ject delivered good sound and high value. With that precept in mind, I headed to Brooklyn’s trendy Café Kitsune last week to attend a demonstration of the company’s new “True Balanced Connection” turntables and phono stages.
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Audio Video NewsNew Products
Audioengine Boosts Portable Listening with Tiny Amp/DAC
Bob Ankosko  |  Oct 24, 2022
Audioengine, the Austin-based company specializing in powered speakers and all-in-one music systems, has introduced its first headphone amplifier/digital audio converter (DAC) with the goal of providing a hassle-free way of upgrading high-resolution music listening over headphones.
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Signals
The Mystery of 96.7 MHz
Ken C. Pohlmann  |  Oct 24, 2022
The year is 2017. You are in Portland, or at least in the general vicinity. It is late at night. You are driving down a dark road. You turn on your radio, and happen to tune to 96.7 MHz on the FM dial. What you hear is something you've never heard on the radio. Something strange is going on, something very strange.

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